The Ring

Director - Gore Verbinski (Mounsehunt, Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl)
Starring - Naomi Watts (King Kong, Children of the Corn: The Gathering), Martin Henderson (Strangers, Grey's Anatomy), and David Dorfman (The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Zombie Roadkill)
Release Date - 2002
Genre - Horror
Tagline - "Before you die, you see..."
Format - DVD (Personal Collection)

Rating (out of 5):

     High school was a pretty shit time for me.  Most of my friends either dropped out of school, transferred to another school, or we slowly drifted apart resulting in me pretty much being by myself until my senior year when I made some friends with people that had similar interests as me.  Our friendship mostly centered around horror, metal, and ECW.  During my high school years a few memorable horror flicks was released.  We had the Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake, Land of the Dead, and the most notable film The Ring.  I remember renting The Ring at the local video store before it shut down and I really enjoyed it.  It was dark, atmospheric, and genuinely creepy.  With Rings getting an official release recently I decided to give this one another watch before popping Rings into the bluray player.

     The film follows Rachel (Watts) who is investigating the death of a family friend and three of her friends when they supposedly died 7 days after watching a cursed VHS.  She visits the motel she stayed at the nights she watched the tape and was able to find it and upon watching it found herself cursed with just 7 days to live.  She frantically searches for answers uncovering the strange disappearance of a small girl but things take an even more ghastly turn when her child accidentally watches the tape forcing her to uncover the truth behind the little girls disappearance and her own mortality.

      I remember really liking The Ring.  So much so I can remember renting it several times and watching it late at night with my horror friends.  However, it looks as if my tastes in horror has shifted because this film really bored me to tears.  The acting in this one is great.  The characters are well written and the cast does a brilliant job bringing them to life.  I thoroughly enjoyed Watts performance and I'm glad she was cast as the lead.  She is able to grab hold of the viewer and not let go.  With that being said, I was not a fan of David Dorfman as her son.  He was the only character in the entire film I did not care for and felt his performance was very underwhelming.  I'm sure they could have found another child actor who would have done a better job.  The story for this one is so intriguing but the pacing and slow build up does not deliver.  When I was younger I felt that this movie was damn near perfect.  It can remember that it sent chills down my spine.  It has now been 15 years and I couldn't remember how the story went or how it played out so it was almost like a new viewing but it lacked the punch that I can remember.  The story was painfully slow and the ending did not have the impact as I remember.  Finally, this is not a horror film for fans looking for blood and gore.  The film relies heavily on story and character interactions.  There is a few deaths scenes and some solid practical effects but nothing for you gorehounds out there.  Overall, The Ring doesn't hold up well over time.  The film is mediocre at best. It deserves at least one viewing but does not have any replay value.